Thursday, December 15, 2011

More takeover targets planned by #Minmetals Resources?

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min2664 After #Minmetals agreement to buy copper producer Anvil mining in September, it has been speculated that the company now has its eyes on Mirabela Nickel and Alumina Ltd. Wang Jionghui, general manager of mining exploration at China Minmetals Corphad also said in an interview at a conference in China that the group would be interested in acquisitions to meet demand for commodities in emerging markets. Mirabela owns the Santa Rita nickel mine in Brazil , and Alumina, which is an owner of the world's biggest producer of the raw material. "Consummating a few of these would go a long way to closing that valuation gap," John Stephenson , who helps manage $2.7 billion at First Asset Investment Management Inc., said in a telephone interview from Istanbul. "Minmetals' mines have relatively short mine lives. They definitely would be an acquirer and it would certainly help." Minmetals Resources, which produces zinc, copper, lead and gold from mines in Laos and Australia , is run by 59-year-old Australian #AndrewMichelmore, the most senior non-Chinese executive at a state-owned listed mining company. Minmetals is a silver sponsor of the Asia Mining Congress. To learn about Asia Mining Congress, visit our website or download our brochure here . Read full article here http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-06/mirabela-takeover-seen-with-minmetals-chasing-nickel-real-m-a.html



Many Cord Blood Companies Experiencing Double Digit Growth

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dow2664 A report called ‘ Capitalizing on Opportunities in Cord Blood Industry Growth ‘ was just released by MarketResearch.com, which describes how a certain sector of blood banks are experiencing a very fast growth rate, ranging from 17% per year to 25% per year. The 201 page report is available for download for $3,995. This industry has got the attention of billionaires, such as Richard Branson, of Virgin Records and Virgin Atlantic Airways fame. He created Virgin Health, a cord blood bank. So what is cord blood? Cord blood is blood that comes from the umbilical cords of babies, and contains a significant amount of hematopoietic stem cells. Specialized cord blood banks store this blood. Cord blood stem cells are considered far superior to stem cells from bone marrow. Cord blood of a baby is preserved in the event it may be needed at some point in the future for treatment of the cancer or genetic disease of the child or the child’s siblings. Many diseases have been treated with cord blood. Information on cord blood and how it is collected, stored, and used, is available at CordBloodStocks.com. Investors have two options when investing in this industry. They can own the stocks of the cord blood banks or own the companies that use cord blood to develop cures and produce extraction and storage products. One that falls into the second category is PerkinElmer, Inc. (PKI), which owns ViaCell, a Cambridge, Massachusetts company which sells ViaCord, a product which is used to preserve baby’s umbilical cord blood. They also research and other therapeutic uses of umbilical cord blood-derived and adult-derived stem cells. The stock trades at 10 times forward earnings and pays a decent yield of 1.5%. Baxter International Inc. (BAX) makes blood collection bags for umbilical cord blood and develop adult stem-cell therapies. They also own a patent for assembling and methods to process cord blood in a sterile fashion to avoid exposure to bacterial contamination and to disburse the introduction of cryopreservation solution into cord blood at a desired rate, thereby avoiding damage or trauma to the cord blood cells. The stock has a forward price to earnings ratio of 10 and sports a yield of 2.7%. Celgene (CELG) is a New Jersey company that is involved in the discovery, production, and marketing of therapies designed to treat cancer and immune-inflammatory-related diseases. They own LifeBank USA, a cord blood bank. The stock has a forward PE of 14. Amgen Inc. (AMGN) is also funding research into cord blood extraction, preservation, and storage. The stock has a forward PE of 10 and carries a yield of 2.0%. China Cord Blood Corporation (CO) provides cord blood collection, and stem cell storage services. The company is based in Beijing, China. The stock trades at 9 times earnings. For a free list of cord blood and stem cell stocks , which can be downloaded, updated, and sorted, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com. Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written. By Stockerblog.com



The Gold Price Close Down 0.6% to Close at $1,574.60

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DG365FD46564GFH654FU898 Gold Price Close Today : 1,574.60 Change : -9.70 or -0.6% Silver Price Close Today : 2922.00 Change : 34.00 or 1.2% Platinum Price Close Today : 1,406.00 Change : -19.30 or -1.4% Palladium Price Close Today : 618.85 Change : 1.15 or 0.2% Gold Silver Ratio Today : 53.89 Change : -0.97 or 0.98% Dow Industrial : 11,823.48 Change : -131.46 or -1.1% US Dollar Index : 80.54 Change : 0.26 or 0.3% Franklin Sanders has not published any commentary today, if he publishes commentary later today it will be published here. Argentum et aurum comparenda sunt — – Gold and silver must be bought. – Franklin Sanders, The Moneychanger The-MoneyChanger.com © 2011, The Moneychanger. May not be republished in any form, including electronically, without our express permission. To avoid confusion, please remember that the comments above have a very short time horizon. Always invest with the primary trend. Gold’s primary trend is up, targeting at least $3,130.00; silver’s primary is up targeting 16:1 gold/silver ratio or $195.66; stocks’ primary trend is down, targeting Dow under 2,900 and worth only one ounce of gold; US$ or US$-denominated assets, primary trend down; real estate bubble has burst, primary trend down. WARNING AND DISCLAIMER. Be advised and warned: Do NOT use these commentaries to trade futures contracts. I don’t intend them for that or write them with that short term trading outlook. I write them for long-term investors in physical metals. Take them as entertainment, but not as a timing service for futures. NOR do I recommend investing in gold or silver Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs). Those are NOT physical metal and I fear one day one or another may go up in smoke. Unless you can breathe smoke, stay away. Call me paranoid, but the surviving rabbit is wary of traps. NOR do I recommend trading futures options or other leveraged paper gold and silver products. These are not for the inexperienced. NOR do I recommend buying gold and silver on margin or with debt. What DO I recommend? Physical gold and silver coins and bars in your own hands. One final warning: NEVER insert a 747 Jumbo Jet up your nose.



More takeover targets planned by #Minmetals Resources?

After #Minmetals agreement to buy copper producer Anvil mining in September, it
has been speculated that the company now has its eyes on Mirabela Nickel and
Alumina Ltd. Wang Jionghui, general manager of mining exploration at China
Minmetals Corphad also said in an interview at a conference in China that the
group would be interested in acquisitions to meet demand for commodities in
emerging markets. Mirabela owns the Santa Rita nickel mine in Brazil , and
Alumina, which is an owner of the world's biggest producer of the raw
material. "Consummating a few of these would go a long way to closing that
valuation gap," John Stephenson , who helps manage $2.7 billion at First Asset
Investment Management Inc., said in a telephone interview from Istanbul.
"Minmetals' mines have relatively short mine lives. They definitely would be
an acquirer and it would certainly help." Minmetals Resources, which produces
zinc, copper, lead and gold from mines in Laos and Australia , is run by
59-year-old Australian #AndrewMichelmore, the most senior non-Chinese executive
at a state-owned listed mining company. Minmetals is a silver sponsor of the
Asia Mining Congress. To learn about Asia Mining Congress, visit our website or
download our brochure here . Read full article here
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-06/mirabela-takeover-seen-with-minmetals-chasing-nickel-real-m-a.html

3 Top Stocks to Stuff Your Stocking

This time of year, everyone seems to be scrambling for the perfect gift. What
to get the husband or wife, what to get Mom and Dad, and what to get the kids
it's often an overwhelming chore. So the last thing you probably want to do is
try to figure out what top stocks to add to your portfolio. Well, to that I say,
bah, humbug! Now is the perfect time to be picking up bargain stocks because the
market is filled with euro zone jitters. Even though Europe remains a Scrooge to
the market, the contrarian inside me says the bold investor might benefit from a
possible year-end Santa Claus rally. Here are a few stocks that could add to
your holiday cheer: Amazon Giving great gifts is easy for me thanks to one of my
favorite holiday shopping destinations, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN ) . The premier
online retailer continues to be a game-changer, and sales of its new Kindle Fire
e-reader are en fuego. One thing that makes AMZN shares attractive here is that
they've actually sold off about 18% during the past month. The recent decline
in the stock means it's a great time to buy this formidable online retailer at
a holiday discount. MasterCard This year, shoppers decided they've had enough
of holding back on spending, and that made the beginning of the holiday shopping
season a blockbuster. Black Friday weekend saw record spending , and in the four
days following Thanksgiving, shoppers laid down $52.4 billion. That metric was
up 16% from the $45 billion spent last year. Cyber Monday also saw record online
sales that were up 33% over last year. Now, ask yourself this: What do many of
these retail and online transactions have in common? The answer is a great many
used a credit card or debit card issued by MasterCard (NYSE: MA ) . If we
continue to see stellar holiday retail sales, it could translate into some very
big upside for MA shares. McDonald's The palatably profitable fast-food giant
tastes really good these days. The company just reported a 7.4% surge in
November same-store sales, the key measure of restaurants open at least a year.
That good news caused McDonald's (NYSE: MCD ) shares to surge to an intraday
all-time high of $98.43 on Friday, Dec. 9. If you've been a MCD shareholder
for any length of time, you know what kind of present this stock has been. And
despite the recent surge in the stock, it's not too late to pull up to the
window and order your very own holiday portfolio Happy Meal. This article
originally appeared on Traders Reserve .

Amazon Investors Should Wait Out the Storm

Heres the dirty little paradox about Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN ); the reason
investors often are unhappy with the online-retailers management, even while
they value the stock at 90 times its forecast 2012 earnings: To compete
aggressively in the long run, Amazon has to risk a lower near-term stock price.
Of course, competing successfully can secure profit growth that can keep the
stock rising for years. Amazons playbook always has been to keep costs as low as
possible, even if it means razor-thin profit margins. Amazons net profit has
long been below 5% of revenue as the company sells goods at prices below its
rivals and introduces loyalty programs like Amazon Prime, which increases sales
per customer but requires Amazon to eat a lot of shipping costs. For the past
couple of months, investors once again have been bracing for a decline in profit
margins at Amazon, thanks to the introduction of the Kindle Fire tablet. After
Amazon announced the $199 tablet, it soon became clear the price tag was below
what it costs Amazon to make it. And so, as InvestorPlaces Anthony John Agnello
pointed out last month, "Amazon might burn a hole in its pockets with the
Kindle Fire even if it's a success." Thats worrisome to investors. Because
during the past six quarters, Amazons net profit margin has fallen from 4.2% to
0.6%. Some of the more bearish analysts are forecasting that Amazon will post a
net loss as high as 26 cents per share this quarter, compared with a
14-cents-per-share profit last quarter. The fourth quarter, of course, is
Amazons busiest quarter by far, with nearly 40% of its annual revenue. A loss in
the fourth quarter would be especially disconcerting. Amazons stock has fallen
27% in the past two months on these concerns, closing at $180.21 on Wednesday.
For its part, Amazon doesnt seem troubled by this outlook. While Kindle Fire
sales will weigh down margins in the next couple of quarters, it could boost
revenue and profits of content sales for years as Kindle owners buy not only
e-books, but movies, music and games to enjoy on the tablet. Of course,
investors and analysts might be underestimating the hurt that the Kindle Fire
will put to Amazons earnings next year. On Tuesday, Goldman Sachs analyst
Heather Bellini said she expects the gap between the Kindle Fires launch and the
eventual increase in digital content sales to give Amazon a 2012 EPS of $1.42 .
That figure is not only significantly below the Streets consensus estimate of
$2.02 per share, it would be Amazons lowest EPS since 2007, when it posted $1.12
per share. It also would mean that Amazon is trading at a forward P/E ratio of
127. Investors dreading a short-term swoon in profits might understandably be
taking heart in recent reports of the clumsy launch of the Kindle Fire. Some
users are discovering the tablet doesnt work right out of the box. Others find
it so awkward to use that one usability expert declared " the Fire is going to
be a failure. " Then there were reports that the Kindle makes it easy for
children to " charge up a storm ." But even that development could hurt one
of Amazons most cherished assets: its image as a consumer-friendly brand. If the
Kindle Fire does fail, Amazons status as a tech innovator would be harmed, and
it could open the door to other digital content portals such as Apple s (NASDAQ:
AAPL ) iTunes or a music/video/app store from Google (NASDAQ: GOOG ). Amazons
best hope is for the Kindle Fire to be a big hit; to reach the broad base of
consumers who want a tablet but find an iPad too costly. That will mean a lot of
discomfort for AMZN investors focused on the next few quarters. But for
investors with a longer-term view, it could strengthen Amazons role as the place
where many of us buy stuff online. As of this writing, Kevin Kelleher did not
hold a position in any of the aforementioned stocks.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Bringing In Network Monitoring

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) has introduced OnPlus Network Monitoring for MSPs.
Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Bringing In Network Monitoring The networking giant
Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) has started offering OnPlus service for managed
service providers aimed at providing network assessment, management and advisory
services to SMB customers. Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) said in a statement,
"By enabling value added resellers (VARs) to quickly create or expand their
managed services practice, OnPlus helps to evolve the customer relationship from
reactive and tactical, to more proactive and strategic." Cisco Systems Inc.
(NASDAQ:CSCO) shares are currently standing at 17.98. Price History Last Price:
17.98 52 Week Low / High: 13.3 / 22.34 50 Day Moving Average: 17.98 6 Month
Price Change %: 21.2% 12 Month Price Change %: -8.0%

The Gold Price Close Down 0.6% to Close at $1,574.60

Gold Price Close Today : 1,574.60 Change : -9.70 or -0.6% Silver Price Close
Today : 2922.00 Change : 34.00 or 1.2% Platinum Price Close Today : 1,406.00
Change : -19.30 or -1.4% Palladium Price Close Today : 618.85 Change : 1.15 or
0.2% Gold Silver Ratio Today : 53.89 Change : -0.97 or 0.98% Dow Industrial :
11,823.48 Change : -131.46 or -1.1% US Dollar Index : 80.54 Change : 0.26 or
0.3% Franklin Sanders has not published any commentary today, if he publishes
commentary later today it will be published here. Argentum et aurum comparenda
sunt -- -- Gold and silver must be bought. - Franklin Sanders, The Moneychanger
The-MoneyChanger.com © 2011, The Moneychanger. May not be republished in any
form, including electronically, without our express permission. To avoid
confusion, please remember that the comments above have a very short time
horizon. Always invest with the primary trend. Gold's primary trend is up,
targeting at least $3,130.00; silver's primary is up targeting 16:1 gold/silver
ratio or $195.66; stocks' primary trend is down, targeting Dow under 2,900 and
worth only one ounce of gold; US$ or US$-denominated assets, primary trend down;
real estate bubble has burst, primary trend down. WARNING AND DISCLAIMER. Be
advised and warned: Do NOT use these commentaries to trade futures contracts. I
don't intend them for that or write them with that short term trading outlook. I
write them for long-term investors in physical metals. Take them as
entertainment, but not as a timing service for futures. NOR do I recommend
investing in gold or silver Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs). Those are NOT physical
metal and I fear one day one or another may go up in smoke. Unless you can
breathe smoke, stay away. Call me paranoid, but the surviving rabbit is wary of
traps. NOR do I recommend trading futures options or other leveraged paper gold
and silver products. These are not for the inexperienced. NOR do I recommend
buying gold and silver on margin or with debt. What DO I recommend? Physical
gold and silver coins and bars in your own hands. One final warning: NEVER
insert a 747 Jumbo Jet up your nose.

Top 10 U.S.-Listed Chinese Stocks with Highest Short Interest: TSL, VIT, LDK, HOGS, MR, YGE, HMIN, ASIA, STP, SOHU (Dec 15, 2011)

Below are the top 10 U.S.-listed Chinese stocks with the highest short interest
as a percentage of total shares outstanding. Stocks with very low market caps
are excluded. Significant Short Covering can cause these stocks to rise sharply
. Trina Solar Limited (ADR) (NYSE:TSL) has the 1st highest short interest in
this segment of the market. Its short interest is 26.6% of its total shares
outstanding. Its Days to Cover is 8.3, calculated as current short interest
divided by average daily volume. VanceInfo Technologies Inc.(ADR) (NYSE:VIT) has
the 2nd highest short interest in this segment of the market. Its short interest
is 25.7% of its total shares outstanding. Its Days to Cover is 11.17, calculated
as current short interest divided by average daily volume. LDK Solar Co., Ltd
(ADR) (NYSE:LDK) has the 3rd highest short interest in this segment of the
market. Its short interest is 21.5% of its total shares outstanding. Its Days to
Cover is 14.87, calculated as current short interest divided by average daily
volume. ZHONGPIN INC. (NASDAQ:HOGS) has the 4th highest short interest in this
segment of the market. Its short interest is 13.9% of its total shares
outstanding. Its Days to Cover is 13.52, calculated as current short interest
divided by average daily volume. Mindray Medical International Ltd (ADR)
(NYSE:MR) has the 5th highest short interest in this segment of the market. Its
short interest is 13.8% of its total shares outstanding. Its Days to Cover is
43.95, calculated as current short interest divided by average daily volume.
Yingli Green Energy Hold. Co. Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:YGE) has the 6th highest short
interest in this segment of the market. Its short interest is 12.8% of its total
shares outstanding. Its Days to Cover is 6.73, calculated as current short
interest divided by average daily volume. Home Inns & Hotels Management Inc.
(ADR) (NASDAQ:HMIN) has the 7th highest short interest in this segment of the
market. Its short interest is 12.1% of its total shares outstanding. Its Days to
Cover is 17.12, calculated as current short interest divided by average daily
volume. AsiaInfo-Linkage, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASIA) has the 8th highest short interest
in this segment of the market. Its short interest is 11.9% of its total shares
outstanding. Its Days to Cover is 13.32, calculated as current short interest
divided by average daily volume. Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (ADR)
(NYSE:STP) has the 9th highest short interest in this segment of the market. Its
short interest is 11.0% of its total shares outstanding. Its Days to Cover is
6.75, calculated as current short interest divided by average daily volume.
Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ:SOHU) has the 10th highest short interest in this segment
of the market. Its short interest is 10.0% of its total shares outstanding. Its
Days to Cover is 2.66, calculated as current short interest divided by average
daily volume.

7 Feel-Good Pharma Stocks to Buy

Like groceries, medicine is one of those essential mainstays that cannot be
overlooked without immediate consequences. With the baby boomers retiring and
getting older by the year, this is a reality investors should not ignore. The
rest of the market has made volatility its first mate on the stormy seas of
2011, but the big pharmaceutical companies are sailing down a different path a
path that ensures stability and growth well into 2012. I watch more than 5,000
publicly traded companies with my Portfolio Grader tool, ranking companies by a
number of fundamental and quantitative measures. And this week, I have seven
feel-good pharma stocks to buy. Here they are, in alphabetical order. Each one
of these stocks gets an "A" or "B" according to my research, meaning it
is a "strong buy" or "buy." Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT ) discovers,
develops, manufactures and sells a diversified line of health care products.
Since the start of 2011, ABT stock is up 13%, compared to a 3% gain for the Dow
Jones in the same time. ABT stock gets an "A" for return on equity in my
Portfolio Grader tool. For more information, view my complete analysis of ABT
stock . Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY ) sells its pharmaceutical products
mostly to wholesalers, retail pharmacies, hospitals and government entities. The
big pharma stock is up more than 27% in just 12 months. BMY gets a "B" for
earnings momentum, a "B" for the magnitude in which earnings projections
have increased during the past month and an "A" for return on equity in my
Portfolio Grader tool. For more information, view my complete analysis of BMY
stock . Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE: LLY ) manufactures its products in 19 countries
and sells its products in more than 120. LLY has posted a return of 14% so far
in 2011. LLY stock gets a "B" for cash flow and an "A" for return on
equity in my Portfolio Grader tool. For more information, view my complete
analysis of LLY stock . GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK ) is involved with vaccines,
over-the-counter medicines and other health-related consumer products. GSK has
posted a year-to-date gain of more than 13%. GSK stock gets an "A" for
earnings momentum and an "A" for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader
tool. For more information, view my complete analysis of GSK stock . Johnson &
Johnson (NYSE: JNJ ) is a household name with more than 250 operating companies.
JNJ stock has posted a modest gain of 1% for 2011, a little less than the
broader markets. JNJ stock gets a "B" for earnings momentum and an "A"
for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader tool. For more information, view my
complete analysis of JNJ stock . Pfizer (NYSE: PFE ) is a global pharmaceutical
company that works with biopharmaceuticals and oncology products. PFE stock has
gained 19% since the start of 2011. PFE stock gets an "A" for operating
margin growth, an "A" for earnings growth, a "B" for its ability to
exceed the consensus earnings estimates on Wall Street, a "B" for the
magnitude in which earnings projections have increased during the past month, a
"B" for cash flow and a "B" for return on equity in my Portfolio Grader
tool. For more information, view my complete analysis of PFE stock . Sanofi
(NYSE: SNY ) is known mostly for developing therapeutic solutions. Year-to-date,
SNY stock has gained nearly 5%, compared to smaller gains by the broader
markets. SNY stock gets an "A" for sales growth, a "B" for earnings
momentum and a "B" for cash flow in my Portfolio Grader tool. For more
information, view my complete analysis of SNY stock . Get more analysis of these
picks and other publicly traded stocks with Louis Navellier's Portfolio Grader
tool, a 100% free stock-rating tool that measures both quantitative buying
pressure and eight fundamental factors.

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In one case, a Wayne County man brought an old foreign coin because of its age. ... is the television shows which deal with antiques and collectibles. ...


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Covidien Follows Abbott With a Pharma Spin-Off

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tdp2664 InvestorPlace In a late October article, we suggested that the Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT ) spin-off of its proprietary pharmaceutical business into a separate company may be the beginning of a trend. It appears that just may be the case. Dublin, Ireland-based Covidien (NYSE: COV ) said today it's going to follow in Abbott's footsteps and separate its pharma business into a publicly traded firm. President and CEO José Almeida said the company has been considering this move for years, according to FiercePharma . Earlier, it had been reported that Covidien had hired JPMorgan to find a buyer that might be willing to pay $4 billion for the business. Almeida didn't indicate whether the company found any takers, but



FedEx Flies, Discover Dives — Thursday’s IP Market Recap

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tdp2664 InvestorPlace FedEx (NYSE: FDX ) and Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS ) both rolled out strong earnings reports Thursday — and that's about where the similarities ended. FedEx cruised to an 8%-plus gain Thursday after beating Wall Street expectations for fiscal second-quarter earnings per share, posting $1.57 against estimates of $1.52. FedEx's performance far outshined last year, with net income up 76% to $497 million, and revenue up 10% to $10.59 billion. FedEx CEO Frederick Smith attributed the quarterly boom to "effective yield management programs" as well as to improved demand for FedEx's Home Delivery and SmartPost services as a huge holiday season for online shopping has boosted residential deliveries. FedEx also announced an order for 27 new 767 aircraft from Boeing (NYSE: BA ), which recently made its biggest deal in company history — a $19 billion, 208-plane contract with Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV ) that eclipsed November's boffo deals with Emirates airline and Indonesia's Lion Air. Discover put together quarterly earnings of 95 cents per share, beating analysts' estimates of 89 cents per share and crushing the year-ago period's 64 cents. The earnings beat was DFS's fourth in a row, with numbers surpassing expectations by 27 cents, 37 cents and 31 cents in the past three quarters. Unfortunately, investors yawned at the first non-double-digit beat of the year and hit the stock for a 3% loss. This also came despite Discover's second dividend increase for the year — a 10-cent-per-share hike payable on Jan. 19, 2012. A couple of Thursday's biggest stock moves came from the tech and pharma sectors. Lam Research (NASDAQ: LRCX ) extended a $3.3 billion stock offer for Novellus (NASDAQ: NVLS ) — both sell front-end semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Novellus jumped 16%, and its counterpart gave up more than 8%. Also, Covidien (NYSE: COV ) mimicked Abbott Labs (NYSE: ABT ) by announcing a spin-off of its pharma business into another publicly traded company, which sent COV shares up about 3%. Three Up Sonosite (NASDAQ: SONO ): Up 27.13% ($11.46) to $53.70. WebMD (NASDAQ: WBMD ): Up 9.07% ($3.14) to $37.75. Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL ): Up 5.4% (44 cents) to $8.59. Three Down InterMune (NASDAQ: ITMN ): Down 30.34% ($5.55) to $12.74. Deckers (NASDAQ: DECK ): Down 9.55% ($9.13) to $86.46. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR ): Down 7.06% ($3.37) to $44.35. As of this writing, Kyle Woodley did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned stocks. Check out our list of previous IP Market Recaps .



FedEx Flies, Discover Dives — Thursday’s IP Market Recap

FedEx (NYSE: FDX ) and Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS ) both rolled out
strong earnings reports Thursday and that's about where the similarities
ended. FedEx cruised to an 8%-plus gain Thursday after beating Wall Street
expectations for fiscal second-quarter earnings per share, posting $1.57 against
estimates of $1.52. FedEx's performance far outshined last year, with net
income up 76% to $497 million, and revenue up 10% to $10.59 billion. FedEx CEO
Frederick Smith attributed the quarterly boom to "effective yield management
programs" as well as to improved demand for FedEx's Home Delivery and
SmartPost services as a huge holiday season for online shopping has boosted
residential deliveries. FedEx also announced an order for 27 new 767 aircraft
from Boeing (NYSE: BA ), which recently made its biggest deal in company history
a $19 billion, 208-plane contract with Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV ) that
eclipsed November's boffo deals with Emirates airline and Indonesia's Lion
Air. Discover put together quarterly earnings of 95 cents per share, beating
analysts' estimates of 89 cents per share and crushing the year-ago period's
64 cents. The earnings beat was DFS's fourth in a row, with numbers surpassing
expectations by 27 cents, 37 cents and 31 cents in the past three quarters.
Unfortunately, investors yawned at the first non-double-digit beat of the year
and hit the stock for a 3% loss. This also came despite Discover's second
dividend increase for the year a 10-cent-per-share hike payable on Jan. 19,
2012. A couple of Thursday's biggest stock moves came from the tech and pharma
sectors. Lam Research (NASDAQ: LRCX ) extended a $3.3 billion stock offer for
Novellus (NASDAQ: NVLS ) both sell front-end semiconductor manufacturing
equipment. Novellus jumped 16%, and its counterpart gave up more than 8%. Also,
Covidien (NYSE: COV ) mimicked Abbott Labs (NYSE: ABT ) by announcing a spin-off
of its pharma business into another publicly traded company, which sent COV
shares up about 3%. Three Up Sonosite (NASDAQ: SONO ): Up 27.13% ($11.46) to
$53.70. WebMD (NASDAQ: WBMD ): Up 9.07% ($3.14) to $37.75. Delta Air Lines
(NYSE: DAL ): Up 5.4% (44 cents) to $8.59. Three Down InterMune (NASDAQ: ITMN ):
Down 30.34% ($5.55) to $12.74. Deckers (NASDAQ: DECK ): Down 9.55% ($9.13) to
$86.46. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR ): Down 7.06% ($3.37) to
$44.35. As of this writing, Kyle Woodley did not hold a position in any of the
aforementioned stocks. Check out our list of previous IP Market Recaps .

Top 10 NASDAQ-100 Stocks with Highest Return on Assets: BIDU, LLTC, PCLN, AAPL, MSFT, RIMM, INFY, GILD, ALTR, FAST (Dec 15, 2011)

Below are the top 10 stocks in the NASDAQ-100 index

Gold Futures Stabilize, Silver Climbs 1.2%

Gold futures stabilized Thursday following three consecutive days of sharp
declines.

Gold Stocks’ Weakness a “Final Blow” for John Paulson?

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DG365FD46564GFH654FU898 GOLD STOCKS NEWS – Gold stocks dipped Thursday morning as the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) fell $0.38, or 0.6%, to $52.00 per share.



Nouriel Roubini’s Much-Needed Lesson in Gold Fundamentals

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DG365FD46564GFH654FU898 Following gold’s sell-off earlier this week, NYU economics professor Nouriel Roubini wrote on his Twitter account “Gold at a 7 weeks low down to 1635. Where is 2000 gold dear gold bugs?” Roubini’s comment stems from a prediction he made on October 22, 2009 that the price of gold would not reach $2,000 per ounce.



Gold, Silver Continue Their Slump

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tdp2664 InvestorPlace A slew of positive economic data sent stocks sharply higher at Thursday’s open, but didn’t help precious metals much. Gold was moving between small gains and losses, while silver prices continued to slide lower. The Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank’s decision to refrain from any additional monetary stimulus appears to have taken whatever wind was there out of precious metals’ sails. Spot gold was off slightly, recently trading at $1,582 an ounce. Spot silver was down nearly 0.6%. Share of Hecla Mining (NYSE: HL ) were dropping sharply on Thursday, off nearly 6%, as the company reported that all miners at its Lucky Friday mine near Mullan, Idaho had been safely removed from the site following a rock burst that occurred late Wednesday. While gold and silver were trading off their lows of the day, gold prices are down nearly 7% on the week, and have breached its 200-day moving average support zone, London’s Bullion Vault reports. “Smaller markets tend to get hurt more during periods of heavy selling,” commented Ole Hansen, vice president of trading advisory at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen. “The main problem from an upside perspective is that investment decisions are not being made this time of year which should limit the upside for now.” Turning to stock exchange trading, gold and silver trusts continued to fall. The SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD ) was showing losses of more than 0.4%. The iShares Gold Trust (NYSE: IAU ) was down more than 0.3%. The iShares Silver Trust (NYSE: SLV ) was off 1.3%. Gold and silver mining ETFs were moving lower as well. The Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDX ) was moving lower, down nearly 1.5%. The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDXJ ) was down 1.5%. The Global X Silver Miners ETF (NYSE: SIL ) was down 0.3%. Gold mining shares were showing losses across the board. Agnico-Eagle Mines (NYSE: AEM ) was showing losses of 2%. Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX ) was down 1%. Goldcorp (NYSE: GG ) was off 0.6%. Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM ) was around 0.5% lower. NovaGold Resources (AMEX: NG ) was more than 0.3% lower. Silver mining shares continued to drop sharply. Coeur d’Alene Mines (NYSE: CDE ) was moving lower, down around 2.75%. Pan American Silver (NASDAQ: PAAS ) was down 3.4%. Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW )



A Double Whammy for Homebuilders

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

tdp2664 InvestorPlace Last week I wrote about two homebuilding stocks that I felt were showing stronger relative strength than their peers and have been outperforming the S&P 500 as of late. Those two stocks are Ryland Homes (NYSE: RYL ) and Beazer Homes (NYSE: BZH ). However, it seems as if every time the slightest bit of sunshine comes along for the real estate market, a dark cloud quickly covers it. As my previous story explained, the group was clearly overextended and ready for a pullback to make them more attractive. And sure enough, this week landed a one-two punch of reports that pummeled this sector in its entirety — and triggered the start of the pullback I was expecting. On Monday, KeyBanc Analyst Kenneth Zener downgraded both Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL ) and Lennar (NYSE: LEN ), from buy to hold, expressing pessimism about the homebuilder sector for 2012. Weaker employment numbers and an end to government stimulus plans were two factors cited for the downgrade. Zener also noted the recent run-up in these stocks’ prices as cause for concern. Following the downgrade, most of the homebuilder stocks were down 2% to 3% on the day. But that wasn’t the only blow. On Tuesday, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced that it has been incorrectly reporting home sales numbers since 2007 (which just happens to be the year the real estate bubble burst), and all of those numbers will need to be revised lower. NAR will issue a full report on the revisions next week. Given that NAR is the country’s largest real estate organization in the country — and responsible for the industry's most important data keeping — how could this happen, and what are the repercussions for investors? According to NAR spokesperson Walter Maloney, “We’re capturing some new home data that should have been filtered out, and we also discovered that some properties were being listed in more than one list.” In other words, NAR was counting some sold properties more than once, and even new-home sales were sometimes added to the mix. But NAR is supposed to report only existing-home sales in its data. Although new-home sales and existing sales are two different entities, a strong existing-sales report usually indicates better numbers for the homebuilders as well. Therefore, any downward revisions to existing sales are sure to hurt the value of the homebuilder stocks as analysts revise their expectations. Another group that could see their prices falter from the revised sales numbers is the home improvement stocks, such as Home Depot (NYSE: HD ) and Lowes (NYSE: LOW ). If analysts’ 2012 projections for these companies were based on more upbeat home sales data, they may want to take another look at the home improvement companies, as well as building materials stocks such as Beacon Roofing Supply (NASDAQ: BECN ) and USG (NYSE: USG ). Both Ryland and Beazer Homes have now pulled back considerably from their recent highs on the heels of these two reports, and are more attractive at these levels than they were last week. Click to Enlarge Courtesy of stockcharts.com However, with the full NAR report coming out next week, it would be prudent to wait at least until then before purchasing any homebuilding stocks. Furthermore, with declining stochastic and RSI indicators, and now a MACD sell signal (see RYL chart), it looks like more selling could be the next step for this beleaguered sector.



5 Big Apple Releases to Expect in 2012

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tdp2664 InvestorPlace After years of consecutive record-breaking quarters, it seems a bit like pointing at the moon to say that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) is going to have a successful 2012. Consumer excitement for the company’s products remains high. Wall Street remains rapt by the company as well. Despite a few months of wiggling, it’s not unrealistic to think AAPL shares could very well hit $500 . Is the company’s momentum guaranteed to continue into 2012? After all, 2011 has been a year of refinement rather exciting new goods. The company’s most successful products — like the iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air laptops — saw new releases throughout the year, but all were only incremental upgrades over previous products. Even Apple’s major software release for the year, the new laptop and desktop operating system Lion, is an iterative product that brings traditional computers closer in line with the company’s portables in terms of use. 2012 will not be another year of merely refinement. Much as 2010 was marked by the release of bold new releases — particularly the original iPad — next year will see Apple release a number of new devices sure to capture the attention of excited consumers. Here are five big Apple releases to expect in 2012:



Nouriel Roubini’s Much-Needed Lesson in Gold Fundamentals

Following golds sell-off earlier this week, NYU economics professor Nouriel
Roubini wrote on his Twitter account Gold at a 7 weeks low down to 1635. Where
is 2000 gold dear gold bugs? Roubinis comment stems from a prediction he made on
October 22, 2009 that the price of gold would not reach $2,000 per ounce.

5 Big Apple Releases to Expect in 2012

After years of consecutive record-breaking quarters, it seems a bit like
pointing at the moon to say that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) is going to have a
successful 2012. Consumer excitement for the companys products remains high.
Wall Street remains rapt by the company as well. Despite a few months of
wiggling, its not unrealistic to think AAPL shares could very well hit $500 . Is
the companys momentum guaranteed to continue into 2012? After all, 2011 has been
a year of refinement rather exciting new goods. The companys most successful
products like the iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air laptops saw new releases
throughout the year, but all were only incremental upgrades over previous
products. Even Apples major software release for the year, the new laptop and
desktop operating system Lion, is an iterative product that brings traditional
computers closer in line with the companys portables in terms of use. 2012 will
not be another year of merely refinement. Much as 2010 was marked by the release
of bold new releases particularly the original iPad next year will see Apple
release a number of new devices sure to capture the attention of excited
consumers. Here are five big Apple releases to expect in 2012:

A Double Whammy for Homebuilders

Last week I wrote about two homebuilding stocks that I felt were showing
stronger relative strength than their peers and have been outperforming the S&P
500 as of late. Those two stocks are Ryland Homes (NYSE: RYL ) and Beazer Homes
(NYSE: BZH ). However, it seems as if every time the slightest bit of sunshine
comes along for the real estate market, a dark cloud quickly covers it. As my
previous story explained, the group was clearly overextended and ready for a
pullback to make them more attractive. And sure enough, this week landed a
one-two punch of reports that pummeled this sector in its entirety and
triggered the start of the pullback I was expecting. On Monday, KeyBanc Analyst
Kenneth Zener downgraded both Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL ) and Lennar (NYSE: LEN
), from buy to hold, expressing pessimism about the homebuilder sector for 2012.
Weaker employment numbers and an end to government stimulus plans were two
factors cited for the downgrade. Zener also noted the recent run-up in these
stocks prices as cause for concern. Following the downgrade, most of the
homebuilder stocks were down 2% to 3% on the day. But that wasnt the only blow.
On Tuesday, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced that it has
been incorrectly reporting home sales numbers since 2007 (which just happens to
be the year the real estate bubble burst), and all of those numbers will need to
be revised lower. NAR will issue a full report on the revisions next week. Given
that NAR is the countrys largest real estate organization in the country and
responsible for the industry's most important data keeping how could this
happen, and what are the repercussions for investors? According to NAR
spokesperson Walter Maloney, Were capturing some new home data that should have
been filtered out, and we also discovered that some properties were being listed
in more than one list. In other words, NAR was counting some sold properties
more than once, and even new-home sales were sometimes added to the mix. But NAR
is supposed to report only existing-home sales in its data. Although new-home
sales and existing sales are two different entities, a strong existing-sales
report usually indicates better numbers for the homebuilders as well. Therefore,
any downward revisions to existing sales are sure to hurt the value of the
homebuilder stocks as analysts revise their expectations. Another group that
could see their prices falter from the revised sales numbers is the home
improvement stocks, such as Home Depot (NYSE: HD ) and Lowes (NYSE: LOW ). If
analysts 2012 projections for these companies were based on more upbeat home
sales data, they may want to take another look at the home improvement
companies, as well as building materials stocks such as Beacon Roofing Supply
(NASDAQ: BECN ) and USG (NYSE: USG ). Both Ryland and Beazer Homes have now
pulled back considerably from their recent highs on the heels of these two
reports, and are more attractive at these levels than they were last week. Click
to Enlarge Courtesy of stockcharts.com However, with the full NAR report coming
out next week, it would be prudent to wait at least until then before purchasing
any homebuilding stocks. Furthermore, with declining stochastic and RSI
indicators, and now a MACD sell signal (see RYL chart), it looks like more
selling could be the next step for this beleaguered sector.

Top 10 Best-Rated Small Cap Stocks: WX, AER, AZPN, CRIS, ALLT, AMRN, KNOL, LOGM, ORB, TLLP (Dec 15, 2011)

Below are the top 10 best-rated Small Cap stocks, based on the percentage of
positive ratings by brokerage analysts. One Chinese company (WX) is on the list.
WuXi PharmaTech (Cayman) Inc. (ADR) (NYSE:WX) is the first best-rated stock in
this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 100% of the 14 brokerage
analysts covering it. AerCap Holdings N.V. (NYSE:AER) is the second best-rated
stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 100% of the 10
brokerage analysts covering it. Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN) is the
third best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by
100% of the 10 brokerage analysts covering it. Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRIS) is the
fourth best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by
100% of the 10 brokerage analysts covering it. Allot Communications Ltd.
(NASDAQ:ALLT) is the fifth best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is
rated positively by 100% of the 9 brokerage analysts covering it. Amarin
Corporation plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:AMRN) is the sixth best-rated stock in this
segment of the market. It is rated positively by 100% of the 9 brokerage
analysts covering it. Knology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KNOL) is the seventh best-rated
stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 100% of the 9
brokerage analysts covering it. LogMeIn, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOGM) is the eighth
best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 100%
of the 9 brokerage analysts covering it. Orbital Sciences Corp. (NYSE:ORB) is
the ninth best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively
by 100% of the 9 brokerage analysts covering it. Tesoro Logistics LP (NYSE:TLLP)
is the 10th best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated
positively by 100% of the 9 brokerage analysts covering it.

U.S PPI Slightly Rose in November – December Report

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

DG365FD46564GFH654FU898 According to the recent producer price index report, which was published today, the PPI for finished goods in increased by 0.3% November compared to October. This report also serves as an indicator for the upcoming U.S core CPI to be published tomorrow, December 16th. The food index sharply rose by 1% during November; while the energy index only slightly inclined by 0.1% during the month. On an annual scale, the PPI inclined by 5.7% during the past 12 months The Producer Price index excluding food and energy slightly rose by 0.1% during November. This PPI ex food and energy is estimated to have a lagged negative linear correlation with gold price; i.e. as the PPI rises, gold price tends to decline the following day. Furthermore, the PPI excluding food and energy has a positive linear correlation with silver price. These relations are mainly via the changes in U.S dollar.



Todays Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA Index, Nasdaq, S&P 500 Stock Market Investing News Mid-Day Today

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

dow2664 The initial half of this trading week has been skewed toward the negative. Sell-offs were broad based during this time frame and investor worry over the euro-zone debt crisis has not abated. Even though European Leaders announced that a plan was in the works to stabilize the strained eurozone economy, investors still question the plan’s potential. A primary concern at this point is the lack of plan details being provided. In addition to this negatively skewed perspective, investors also worry about the general global climate. The negative eurozone ramifications will affect all major markets and this aspect is keeping many investors sidelined. On a positive note, the stock futures for the primary index composites were posting green prior to opening bell this morning. European markets were trending higher at this point as well. As the trading session reached the mid-day mark today, the primary indices were still on the positive side of break-even. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was posting higher by .79 percent at 11,916.57. The Nasdaq was posting higher by .37 percent at 2,548.66 and the S&P 500 was posting higher by .74 percent at 1,220.75. Jobs data posted better than expected today and helped to keep indices afloat. Frank Matto



Todays Gold Price per ounce Spot gold price per gram; Spot silver price per ounce; Gold Silver Price Trends Mid-Day Today Current

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

dow2664 Gold and silver price trend-lines have struggled this week. Both contracts finished the last session in the red. Gold price per ounce closed the last session lower by 76.20 at 1586.90 per troy ounce. Silver price per ounce closed lower last session by 2.33 at 28.94 per troy ounce. The volatile euro continued to weaken last session and the strength of the dollar grew. This action pressured precious metal gold and silver acquisition. Yesterday’s close for gold plummeted to the lowest close price since July. Gold futures touched the intra-day low of 1565.70 before settling at 1586.90 per troy ounce. Prior to opening bell this morning, spot gold price per gram and spot silver price per ounce trend-lines were both moving positively however. Futures for the primary stock indices were green across the board as well. As the trading session reached the mid-day mark, gold and silver contract prices were lower. Contract gold for February delivery was red by .88 percent at an electronic price of 1573 per troy ounce. Silver contract for March delivery was red by .52 percent at 28.78 per troy ounce. Spot gold price per gram was lower by .33 at 50.61 but spot silver price per ounce was higher by .26 at 29.14 at mid-day. Camillo Zucari



Thursday Apple Rumors: Apple Lawsuits Helping Samsung’s Galaxy Tab

XCSFDHG46767FHJHJF

tdp2664 InvestorPlace Here are your Apple rumors and AAPL stock news items for Thursday: Samsung Uses Apple Lawsuits to Raise Tablet Profile: Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) gave Samsung (PINK: SSNLF ) lemons — and now it’s lemonade time. Samsung has been embroiled in an international patent lawsuit war with Apple over its mobile devices, particularly the Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet. Apple has moved to block the sale of the Galaxy Tab on all sides of the world, from Australia to Germany. However, now that it has secured the right to sell the Galaxy Tab in some of these contested territories, Samsung is now using the tablet’s Apple-perceived infamy to sell the product. As noted in a Thursday report at Mac Rumors , Samsung Australia VP of telecommunications Tyler McGee told The Sydney Morning Herald that the lawsuits have made the Galaxy Tab a “household name.” Website Engadget also posted an advertisement for the tablet from an Australian paper boasting the tagline, “The tablet Apple tried to stop.” More Than a Quarter-Billion iPhone, iPad Sales Expected in 2012: In a Thursday report at Fortune (via 9 to 5 Mac ), Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty raised sales expectations for Apple’s popular portable devices during the first quarter of 2012. What’s wild about the expectations is that Huberty’s research indicates Apple will sell more goods at the beginning of next year than during the holiday quarter of 2011. Where Morgan Stanley’s previous estimates put iPhone sales at around 28 million for the first quarter, based off a new survey, the new estimate is 41 million, with total 2012 sales raised from 134 million to 190 million . The iPad received a similar increase, with previous sales estimates for 2012 at 52 million raised now to 81 million. Apple Named 10th-Best Place to Work: Online careers website Glassdoor.com released the results of its 2012 Employee’s Choice Awards, naming Apple the 10th-best company to work for . Apple came in 20th in last year’s survey. Employees answered a 20-question survey covering topics including employee morale, career opportunities and work/life balance, among others. As of this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned stocks. Follow him on Twitter at



Crocodile Gold Enhances Cosmo Production Capacity

Crocodile Gold (CRK.TSX) announced two key milestones at its Cosmo Underground
Mine in the Northern Territory of Australia.

Gold Stocks’ Weakness a “Final Blow” for John Paulson?

GOLD STOCKS NEWS – Gold stocks dipped Thursday morning as the Market Vectors
Gold Miners ETF (GDX) fell $0.38, or 0.6%, to $52.00 per share.

U.S PPI Slightly Rose in November – December Report

According to the recent producer price index report, which was published today,
the PPI for finished goods in increased by 0.3% November compared to October.
This report also serves as an indicator for the upcoming U.S core CPI to be
published tomorrow, December 16th. The food index sharply rose by 1% during
November; while the energy index only slightly inclined by 0.1% during the
month. On an annual scale, the PPI inclined by 5.7% during the past 12 months
The Producer Price index excluding food and energy slightly rose by 0.1% during
November. This PPI ex food and energy is estimated to have a lagged negative
linear correlation with gold price; i.e. as the PPI rises, gold price tends to
decline the following day. Furthermore, the PPI excluding food and energy has a
positive linear correlation with silver price. These relations are mainly via
the changes in U.S dollar.

Todays Gold Price per ounce Spot gold price per gram; Spot silver price per ounce; Gold Silver Price Trends Mid-Day Today Current

Gold and silver price trend-lines have struggled this week. Both contracts
finished the last session in the red. Gold price per ounce closed the last
session lower by 76.20 at 1586.90 per troy ounce. Silver price per ounce closed
lower last session by 2.33 at 28.94 per troy ounce. The volatile euro continued
to weaken last session and the strength of the dollar grew. This action
pressured precious metal gold and silver acquisition. Yesterdays close for gold
plummeted to the lowest close price since July. Gold futures touched the
intra-day low of 1565.70 before settling at 1586.90 per troy ounce. Prior to
opening bell this morning, spot gold price per gram and spot silver price per
ounce trend-lines were both moving positively however. Futures for the primary
stock indices were green across the board as well. As the trading session
reached the mid-day mark, gold and silver contract prices were lower. Contract
gold for February delivery was red by .88 percent at an electronic price of 1573
per troy ounce. Silver contract for March delivery was red by .52 percent at
28.78 per troy ounce. Spot gold price per gram was lower by .33 at 50.61 but
spot silver price per ounce was higher by .26 at 29.14 at mid-day. Camillo
Zucari

Gold, Silver Continue Their Slump

A slew of positive economic data sent stocks sharply higher at Thursdays open,
but didnt help precious metals much. Gold was moving between small gains and
losses, while silver prices continued to slide lower. The Federal Reserve and
the European Central Banks decision to refrain from any additional monetary
stimulus appears to have taken whatever wind was there out of precious metals
sails. Spot gold was off slightly, recently trading at $1,582 an ounce. Spot
silver was down nearly 0.6%. Share of Hecla Mining (NYSE: HL ) were dropping
sharply on Thursday, off nearly 6%, as the company reported that all miners at
its Lucky Friday mine near Mullan, Idaho had been safely removed from the site
following a rock burst that occurred late Wednesday. While gold and silver were
trading off their lows of the day, gold prices are down nearly 7% on the week,
and have breached its 200-day moving average support zone, Londons Bullion Vault
reports. Smaller markets tend to get hurt more during periods of heavy selling,
commented Ole Hansen, vice president of trading advisory at Saxo Bank in
Copenhagen. The main problem from an upside perspective is that investment
decisions are not being made this time of year which should limit the upside for
now. Turning to stock exchange trading, gold and silver trusts continued to
fall. The SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD ) was showing losses of more than 0.4%. The
iShares Gold Trust (NYSE: IAU ) was down more than 0.3%. The iShares Silver
Trust (NYSE: SLV ) was off 1.3%. Gold and silver mining ETFs were moving lower
as well. The Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDX ) was moving lower, down
nearly 1.5%. The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDXJ ) was down
1.5%. The Global X Silver Miners ETF (NYSE: SIL ) was down 0.3%. Gold mining
shares were showing losses across the board. Agnico-Eagle Mines (NYSE: AEM ) was
showing losses of 2%. Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX ) was down 1%. Goldcorp (NYSE: GG
) was off 0.6%. Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM ) was around 0.5% lower. NovaGold
Resources (AMEX: NG ) was more than 0.3% lower. Silver mining shares continued
to drop sharply. Coeur dAlene Mines (NYSE: CDE ) was moving lower, down around
2.75%. Pan American Silver (NASDAQ: PAAS ) was down 3.4%. Silver Wheaton (NYSE:
SLW )

Todays Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA Index, Nasdaq, S&P 500 Stock Market Investing News Mid-Day Today

The initial half of this trading week has been skewed toward the negative.
Sell-offs were broad based during this time frame and investor worry over the
euro-zone debt crisis has not abated. Even though European Leaders announced
that a plan was in the works to stabilize the strained eurozone economy,
investors still question the plans potential. A primary concern at this point is
the lack of plan details being provided. In addition to this negatively skewed
perspective, investors also worry about the general global climate. The negative
eurozone ramifications will affect all major markets and this aspect is keeping
many investors sidelined. On a positive note, the stock futures for the primary
index composites were posting green prior to opening bell this morning. European
markets were trending higher at this point as well. As the trading session
reached the mid-day mark today, the primary indices were still on the positive
side of break-even. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was posting higher by .79
percent at 11,916.57. The Nasdaq was posting higher by .37 percent at 2,548.66
and the S&P 500 was posting higher by .74 percent at 1,220.75. Jobs data posted
better than expected today and helped to keep indices afloat. Frank Matto

Thursday Apple Rumors: Apple Lawsuits Helping Samsung’s Galaxy Tab

Here are your Apple rumors and AAPL stock news items for Thursday: Samsung Uses
Apple Lawsuits to Raise Tablet Profile: Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) gave Samsung
(PINK: SSNLF ) lemons and now its lemonade time. Samsung has been embroiled in
an international patent lawsuit war with Apple over its mobile devices,
particularly the Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet. Apple has moved to block the sale of
the Galaxy Tab on all sides of the world, from Australia to Germany. However,
now that it has secured the right to sell the Galaxy Tab in some of these
contested territories, Samsung is now using the tablets Apple-perceived infamy
to sell the product. As noted in a Thursday report at Mac Rumors , Samsung
Australia VP of telecommunications Tyler McGee told The Sydney Morning Herald
that the lawsuits have made the Galaxy Tab a household name. Website Engadget
also posted an advertisement for the tablet from an Australian paper boasting
the tagline, The tablet Apple tried to stop. More Than a Quarter-Billion iPhone,
iPad Sales Expected in 2012: In a Thursday report at Fortune (via 9 to 5 Mac ),
Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty raised sales expectations for Apples popular
portable devices during the first quarter of 2012. Whats wild about the
expectations is that Hubertys research indicates Apple will sell more goods at
the beginning of next year than during the holiday quarter of 2011. Where Morgan
Stanleys previous estimates put iPhone sales at around 28 million for the first
quarter, based off a new survey, the new estimate is 41 million, with total 2012
sales raised from 134 million to 190 million . The iPad received a similar
increase, with previous sales estimates for 2012 at 52 million raised now to 81
million. Apple Named 10th-Best Place to Work: Online careers website
Glassdoor.com released the results of its 2012 Employees Choice Awards, naming
Apple the 10th-best company to work for . Apple came in 20th in last years
survey. Employees answered a 20-question survey covering topics including
employee morale, career opportunities and work/life balance, among others. As of
this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not hold a position in any of the
aforementioned stocks. Follow him on Twitter at

Top 10 Best-Rated Investment Services Stocks: MCGC, OZM, BLK, KFN, AMP, IVZ, CS, APO, BR, NOAH (Dec 15, 2011)

Below are the top 10 best-rated Investment Services stocks, based on the
percentage of positive ratings by brokerage analysts. One Chinese company (NOAH)
is on the list. MCG Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:MCGC) is the first best-rated
stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 100% of the 4
brokerage analysts covering it. Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC (NYSE:OZM)
is the second best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated
positively by 89% of the 9 brokerage analysts covering it. BlackRock, Inc.
(NYSE:BLK) is the third best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is
rated positively by 88% of the 16 brokerage analysts covering it. KKR Financial
Holdings LLC (NYSE:KFN) is the fourth best-rated stock in this segment of the
market. It is rated positively by 86% of the 7 brokerage analysts covering it.
Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) is the fifth best-rated stock in this
segment of the market. It is rated positively by 85% of the 13 brokerage
analysts covering it. Invesco Ltd. (NYSE:IVZ) is the sixth best-rated stock in
this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 84% of the 19 brokerage
analysts covering it. Credit Suisse Group AG (ADR) (NYSE:CS) is the seventh
best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated positively by 83% of
the 6 brokerage analysts covering it. Apollo Global Management LLC (NYSE:APO) is
the eighth best-rated stock in this segment of the market. It is rated
positively by 82% of the 11 brokerage analysts covering it. Broadridge Financial
Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) is the ninth best-rated stock in this segment of the
market. It is rated positively by 80% of the 5 brokerage analysts covering it.
Noah Holdings Limited (ADR) (NYSE:NOAH) is the 10th best-rated stock in this
segment of the market. It is rated positively by 80% of the 5 brokerage analysts
covering it.

Gold Silver and Oil Plummeted Yesterday –Recap December 14

Major commodities prices took a dive yesterday and declined by the sharpest rate
in recent months; some speculate that the trigger for this turn of events may
have been the announcement in the recent FOMC meeting of no new stimulus plan; I
suspect, gold and silver prices are strongly correlated with the expansion of
the U.S. monetary base and therefore a lack of another stimulus plan prompted a
dumping of commodities including gold.

How Low Will This Market Go?

A fall in the euro sent equity and commodity markets into a downward spiral
yesterday. Sentiment against the euro strengthened following Germany's stand
that its government is against raising the lending limit for a euro zone
bailout. In response, Italy's 10-year bond yield rose 7%-plus, and Spain and
France saw their bond yields jump as well. The U.S. dollar rose, of course, and
the rise was accentuated by a series of better-than-expected economic reports.
Commodities fell sharply in response to the stronger dollar. The CRB Index fell
3.4%, and gold settled at $1,587.70 an ounce, down 4.6%, and silver lost 7.6%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 11,823, off 1.1%, the S&P 500 ended
at 1,212, down 1.13%, and the Nasdaq closed at 2,539, down 1.55%. The NYSE
traded 928 million shares, and the Nasdaq crossed 512 million. Decliners were
ahead of advancers on the Big Board by 3-to-1 and on the Nasdaq by 2-to-1.
Yesterday, every major index violated its near-term support as the dollar
rocketed to new highs. Click to Enlarge The breakdown of the S&P 500 is
significant because it confirmed the failure of the index to break higher at its
bearish resistance line (June/July, October and November highs); it turned down
from its 200-day moving average a confirmation that the long-term bear market
is intact; and it crushed the near-term support provided by the conjunction of
the 20-day and 50-day moving averages. The question is: How low will it go? The
answer may surprise you: Not very far, at least initially. There is a broad band
of support at 1,124 to 1,225 that will more than likely slow the decline, and
the uptrend line of a major trading triangle rests at 1,175. Additionally, the
Fibonacci numbers off of the November low to the December are: 50% = 1,212
(yesterday's close), 61.8% = 1,200.

Todays Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA Index; Nasdaq Index; S&P 500 Index, Stock Market USA Investing News Today

The primary stock indices in the U.S. fell lower through the mid-week trading
session today. The negative trending has been a constant this week as investors
continue to deal with the negative ramifications of the European debt crisis.
Leaders in Europe have announced that a plan to stabilize the strained eurozone
economy is set and scheduled to be implemented in the coming months. Few
plan-specific details are available however and worry remains. The weight of
this worry has pulled the primary indices in the U.S. into the red on each
trading day this week. Today, as the final numbers were finalized, the three
primary indices settled on the negative side of break-even. The Dow Jones
Industrial Average finished the session red by 1.10 percent at 11,823.48. The
Nasdaq finished the day lower by 1.55 percent at 2,539.31 and the S&P 500 closed
out the session red by 1.13 percent at 1,211.82. The dollar gained momentum as
the euro continued to fall back. Commodities dropped lower. Oil price per barrel
fell by 5.18 percent last session to 94.95 per barrel and gold futures dropped
off into the red as well last session. Frank Matto

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